Work products, including food products, are cut or otherwise portioned into smaller portions by processes in accordance with customer needs. Also, excess fat, bone and other foreign or undesirable materials are routinely trimmed from the food products. Much of the portioning/trimming of work products, in particular food products, is now carried out with the use of automated portioning machines. These machines use various scanning techniques to ascertain the size and shape of the work product as it is being advanced on a moving conveyor. This information is analyzed with the aid of a computer to determine how to portion the work product into the desired sizes, weights or other criteria being used. For example, if work product portions of a specific weight are desired, the information from the scanner may be employed to control the operation of a crosscutting device to cut the work product into the desired portioning sizes. If the work product changes in width or thickness or other physical parameter along its length, the location of the crosscut made in the work product to achieve a desired end portion weight may be controlled. The apparatus may operate in this manner until the work product has been entirely portioned, which may result in a residual unusable section of the initial work product which is smaller in weight or size than the required weight or size.